Second Chances
by Agent Paradox
Summary: A secret agent named Wanda, a cave full of human rebels, an Organization that plans to wipe out all humans from their very own planet, a mission that will change Wanda's opinions on humans, a friendship of different races and a love to be determined. AR
1. My Life As a Secret Agent

Souls are soft and gentle creatures. But when their existence are threatened to be vanquished by organisms – namely, humans – they can be very protective of their race. Enter the Souls' Welfare Organization, which makes sure that all the souls on Earth are safe from the wrath of the humans who were vengeful because of their exile from their very planet. Many souls were recruited and one of them is Agent Wanderer. What will happen when she comes across a cave that is inhabited by humans?

A/N: Hey guys! It's me, Agent P (lol to those who watch phineas and ferb!) with my first fanfic ever. As this is my first one, I don't know if it's good or bad. But what the heck. I was always so envious of people who can write well. I'm also an avid reader of many books and I sometimes write. For me, it's the only outlet I've got. Anyway, now I'm presenting you my baby – Second Chances.

P.S. Hmmm oh yeah if you've got any questions at all don't hesitate to pm me.

**Second Chances **

Chapter 001: My Life as a Secret Agent

"Wanderer?"

I looked up from the clutter of papers that occupied my not – so – neat table and saw the familiar form of Frozen Flames standing at my doorway. "Oh hey Jimmy," i greeted him accompanied with a smile.

This soul, Frozen Flames, kept his human name just like all the others. Unlike him, I never wanted to change my name at all or keep my 'human name'. First of all, only one person or rather there's only one soul who occupied this host and her name is Petals Open to the Moon or simply, Pet. The human who was supposedly here before the two of us seemed like she didn't exist at all. She's like a myth now because I haven't found any memories of her. It was as if she had erased herself from this universe.

Anyway, my life here on Earth is my ninth life. I had been given a variety of names many times before and I wanted to keep my name or title, Wanderer because it would be hard to keep track of who I really am. And who I am, or rather what I am is a soul. I am not a human even though I am existing through the help of their form.

"Breath of Heart would like to see you in her office," Jimmy said with a smile on his face.

I smiled at him in return. Breath of Heart is my intellectual supervisor. For us souls, that means that they are your personal guide in any field that you will take. "I would be happy to go to her office and talk to her."

Okay. Maybe I was lying a bit. I was stressed and I needed some rest. I have a mountain of paperwork that needed to be done and signed until this afternoon. The last thing I wanted to do is go to my supervisor's office and discuss some things that were beyond us. But since i believe in the saying, "Behind every great soul is an intellectual supervisor." I stood up and went obediently to her office.

"Got any mission today Wanderer?" a voice spoke from behind me.

I tensed and turned around. "Oh it's you, Floats in The Sea."

His upturned lips went down into a frown. He hates it when anybody calls him that but I always seem to 'forget' that. "The name's Drake, Wanderer."

I continued walking but he still followed me. "I'm sorry. It's just that I can't seem to remember human names as much as soul names."

I hoped he got the hint that I don't want to chat with anybody today. I'm not a great liar and he must have noticed us. Floats in the Sea, er, Drake is a great asset in the organization even though he's a bit arrogant.

"That's a shame," I heard him say. "What about you Wanderer? When are you gonna adopt a name for your own?"

I stopped walking. "I don't really want to change my name. I'm fine with Wanderer."

He smiled. "I'm not saying that it's not a beautiful name but all the others have adopted their human names or something they like. Even Breath of Heart did that ages ago but just returned to her current name when her husband died."

I stepped onto the elevator and told him, "I'm not influenced easily by peer pressure."

I caught a shadow of a laugh from him before the elevator doors closed. I just shook my head.

Peer pressure.

Ha.

They're not even my friends; they're just my acquaintances. Even Breath of Heart is only an acquaintance though I'm ashamed to admit that even to myself.

The truth is my friends aren't here at the organization. They weren't recruited but I was. And of course I had to say yes because at that time, I thought my mother would be proud of me. Now though, because of this organization, I hadn't even seen much of her before she died.

Yes. Souls can die.

Especially in the hands of humans.

The elevator doors opened and I stepped out. Breath of Heart's office was just at the end of the hall. This floor was lively at one point but since the sudden rise of humans, they have all disappeared leaving only Breath of Heart alone in this part of the building.

"Wanderer?"

I looked up and saw Breath of Heart. She was a middle-aged woman with perfectly brown curls and a gentle face. She was always the role model of all the supervisors and she hasn't gotten bitter when her husband died suddenly because he was attacked by humans. There was nothing she could do but of course The Big Boss has to punish her (because when you pledge yourself to the organization, you can't let any chance of catching humans pass you by) but at the same time sympathize with her. I don't know how anyone could do both things at the same time but The Big Boss always knows some things that even we, members of the organization, don't know about.

The organization I'm talking about is the Souls' Welfare Organization where The Big Boss recruits souls to help them defend themselves. And that's what we're doing. We would round up the remaining humans but instead of using them we would just discard them as they do to us. I know that this goal was to be implemented some time ago but apparently some human lovers protested and even The Big Boss couldn't deny the other souls' favor to give humans the benefit of the doubt.

And look what good that did.

The humans planned a revolution to kill all the souls even if it meant that their hosts would die along with them too. Too many souls were left to perish and die that day. Fortunately, some souls arrived and with the help of The Big Boss, the humans failed to do what they wanted to do and succumbed to their shelters again.

We caught a few humans and we discarded them.

Just like what they did to us.

That's what they deserved for doing such a foul thing to the souls.

"Wanderer?" Breath of Heart's voice brought me back to reality and to the SWO's building.

This time, I didn't just looked up but walked towards Breath of Heart who has her head stuck in the doorway.

"I'm sorry Breath of Heart. I was in my own little planet again," I said sheepishly.

"Traveling in nine different worlds isn't enough for you huh?" she asked jokingly before ushering me inside her office.

"Sit down Wanderer," she said.

Breath of Heart's office is nothing like the other supervisors' rooms.

Her room is pink and has lots of decorations in it that a non-member would think that they have entered a childish soul's room. But the truth is, Breath of Heart confided in me that although our organization symbolizes the weight of the problems of the souls' race, she still wanted to kid herself that everything is still okay. And entering her office, I get that feeling.

That feeling of serenity and calmness.

"Is everything alright Breath of Heart?" I asked her bewilderedly. Her usually calm, cool and collected face was now stretched into a worried and anxious one.

"I'm afraid not sweetie," she replied, her voice stressed and urgent. "The Big Boss has never had the urgent need to put someone in such a delicate challenging task."

That's a code for 'an impossibly dangerous mission'.

Just so you know.

"Where are they sending them this time?" I asked her, intrigued. You see, Breath of Heart considers me as her daughter now and sometimes we talk about different things: from simple things as what latest boots were in or out to more serious things like the Organization's goals, The Big Boss and humans.

"To the desert. Seems like that some Soul Rescuers spotted a few humans trudging along the desert."

"How many of them were trudging along?"

"A few." She said.

"Who are they sending this time?"

There was silence.

The kind of silence that people were preparing to give you some bad news (re: you have been fired from the Organization, the humans are preparing to attack all the souls and you don't have any more planets to live in because all the other hosts had a revolution too).

I looked at her green eyes tinted with silver. She opened her mouth to speak and the next words shocked me to the core: "The Big Boss plans to send you."

oOo

You see, even though I've been in the Organization for a few months now, I haven't been in a real mission. I was always the one who takes care of paperwork and a little healing when the Healers have got their hands full.

I would never have dreamed that I would one day partake in a mission.

And all alone.

"Breath of Heart… did The Big Boss actually said my name? He really wants me to do this mission?" I asked her, my voice shaky with nervousness.

She placed her hand on top of mine to try to ease me. "He called me yesterday. I told him that you're not yet ready and you're inexperienced but he insisted that he wants you to do it. I'm really sorry. I tried my best to get you out of it but he wouldn't take no for an answer"

I nodded. They say that's what The Big Boss is really like. For a soul he's pretty bossy. I took a deep breath and looked back at my supervisor. "Okay. I think I'm ready for this. What does he want me to do?"

She shook her head like she's warning me that I'm not cut out for this "If you say so. You won't be with a group. You have to act alone. The Big Boss gave me some tools that should come in handy for your mission."

I nodded like I'm not really afraid of what's going to happen. "Okay. When I see them, I would call first base and they would rush in any second right?"

She bowed down her head like she was expecting this. "Wanderer," she held eye contact with me then, "this isn't any regular mission. You'll have to be one of them to succeed in this task."

My mouth turned into a frown and my forehead creased. "Um… Breath of Heart… I don't really understand what you're saying. I have to be one of them? What do you mean?"

"The Big Boss thought that there still maybe a few humans out there. And he wants to catch all of them. He told me that the Seekers' enthusiasm aren't enough. He wants an insider," she said in a soft voice. She hated violence. She always hated it. What a typical irony that now she belongs to an organization that wants to exterminate all the humans left on Earth.

"How on earth am I going to walk in a desert full of rebellions and tried not be killed? Do I interview them? Or maybe a survey. Do you prefer The Organization or The Seekers?" I told her in a mocking voice. I was getting annoyed. Was The Big Boss purposefully trying to make me a guinea big of his organization?

"Wanderer. Calm down. That's what I'm trying to explain to you," as she was saying this she was holding up a black messenger bag, "This is going to be your equipments. You have enough food here and if that isn't sufficient to keep you alive, we have stocked your car with lots of food too. We gave you a brand new cell phone that has the numbers of all the souls you need to get in touch with."

Bummer. I was hoping for a sort of laser beam to fight the humans.

I flinched at the thought.

How am I going to capture them anyway?

I made a mental note t ask Breath of Heart after she's done with her speech.

"Of course, we packed some of your clothes too – "

"Wait a sec. How on earth did you guys managed to do that? I know I put in a lot of alarms in case of intruders."

She gave me a sarcastic look. "You bought those alarms from the Organization. They know how to turn them off. Anyway, the thing that will probably intrigue you is this."

She gave me this long rectangular box. I opened it and what was inside were contact lens. But they weren't your typical contacts. Instead of the transparent whitish fluid that's in the normal contacts, it has a solid opaque white color like someone has painted it with er paints.

"What's this supposed to be?" I asked the woman in front of me.

"They're the soul super lenses," she said gravely. "They help obscure what you really are. They hide our silvery glints thus making us look humans."

Oh. That's how it was supposed to be.

"How come I don't know this product? If I had known that they're on sale now –"

"Don't be naïve Wanderer. Only the Organization knows of that. Non-members have no knowledge of them too and especially not humans. The seekers have no knowledge of our new gadget too. So be careful because if they spot you and capture you, they'll think you're just a normal, helpless human," she emphasized.

I gulped. Can I really pull this off?

"How long am I going to stay there?" I asked nonchalantly.

Something in her face makes me know that i won't like what she's about to say.

"For as long as it takes and for as long you like. The Big Boss won't expect you to come back in nine months," she said smilingly.

Nine months is the fastest record of catching humans when we're on a mission. I hope it doesn't take me that long.

"Um.. say I do find them. Do I call you the second I see them or wait for instructions?" I asked her.

"You have to realize that you can't get in touch with us after you're in their hideout. The Big Boss wants you to make sure that all of them are there and that nobody would be able to escape. When you're really certain that we should go into action then call us," she said grimly.

I nodded. Scared as I was with the fact that I have to stay in the humans' place, I was excited all the same. I haven't seen a real human before. Well I have. All I need to do is look at the mirror but that's not what I meant. I haven't seen a human that's still a human and not being operated on a Healers' clinic.

"Just one last question. Why does he want me, specifically me and only me to do it? There are lots of agents in here that have never even been on a mission," I complained.

"Including you. Besides we believe in you," she said.

My heart was filled with this warm and fuzzy feeling inside. It's so good to be trusted.

I smiled at her. "That's good enough for me. When do I start?"

She looked troubled. "Tomorrow. You can still back out. I'll tell him that you didn't want to do it and –"

"No. I'll do it," I said defiantly. The last thing I wanted to do was to embarrass myself in front of all the Organization. I reached for the bag, smiled at Breath of Heart and walked out of her office.

oOo

"_Wanderer," the voice was kind and gentle but it was also filled with something._

_Something that the speaker shouldn't feel. _

_The voice was filled with pain. _

_And there was nothing she could do. _

_What she could do, the only thing that she could do was to watch while her mother writhed in pain, while she bled and while she die little by little._

_She was dying too. She was dying inside. It was too much. This was too much for anyone to bear. Even someone who intrudes a person's life until that person is no longer herself/himself. One who is a soul. _

_She crouched down until her eyes were level with hers. She wanted nothing more but to ease her pain, to make her forget what has happened. _

_The victim opened her mouth to speak and blood trickled the side of her mouth. Her heart clenched with pain as she tried to imagine the pain what her mother was going through. Her clumsy hands grasped Wanderer's shirt and Wanderer leaned down to hear whatever it is she wanted to say. "G-Get … out of … h-here."_

_With those parting words, she fell back on the floor with a soft thud but to Wanderer it was loud enough to make her remember of this for as long as she lives. It was the sound that would forever haunt her dreams by night and her thoughts by day. _

_Suddenly, the room was filled with silence. She looked at the abandoned and messy room. Her mother surely had fought for her life. Ran with all her might just to save herself. To buy time for her daughter. To make sure that she was safe too. _

_She imagined her mother getting caught and fiercely shot in the chest and she squeezed her eyes shut trying to make the images disappear from her mind. _

_Just then, there was the sound of a gun being loaded._

_Get out of here._

_That was the last thing her mother told her._

_She wasn't about to disobey her now. _

_She quietly rose and ran to the front door when the cold – blooded murderer stepped out from the shadows and aimed deliberately at her. _

"_You're next," he whispered menacingly. _

_She screamed and fell back. She tripped on her own feet and fell on the coffee table wounding her own arm. But she didn't care. She's never been more frightened in her own life._

"_Goodbye. I'm not going to shoot your pretty face don't worry. You're going to get shot in the chest. As they say like mother like daughter." _

_And with that he shot. The fierce sound of the bullet whirring around the room deafened her but she could've sworn there were two shots. _

_She opened her eyes and saw…_

_The man lying face first on the carpet with a bullet shot on his back. Wanderer screamed again as a man engulfed her in his arms. _

"_It's okay. I've got you. You're safe now," he said over and over again. _

_She was trembling as she stood up when a sudden pain spurted from her shoulder. She looked at it and was surprise that her left sleeve was filled with blood. She's been shot. _

_She fainted at what she saw even though she still heard the man's voice in the background. "It's okay. We just need to go to the Healer's office and you'll be fine."_

_A man appeared at the door and said, "You're next."_

oOo

I woke up with a scream. I was sweating so much as I realized that it was just a dream.

It seemed so real.

I've never dreamed of this until now. It was a nightmare that I didn't hope would enter my unconscious state once more.

It seemed like my mother wanted to warn me something.

But what?

That I'm making the wrong decision?

That this could be a turning point in my life?

Let's see in the future shall we?

Let's see if I could make the right choice?

Right now would be a good time for the soul who rescued me in my dream to show up again. I really really want someone to comfort me right now. To say that everything's okay or at least would be okay.

But I know that isn't how it's supposed to be.

Tomorrow, I would have to be independent although I need some help.

Tomorrow, I've got to be on my own and pretend that I'm not scared.

I've got a lot to deal with tomorrow.

I put my hands on my face and wept until I fell asleep again.

END

A/N: So that's why Wanda is bitter with humans right now. So. That's about it. The next chapter would be about how she went to the cave and stuff. If you happened to read this, please review. It would help me understand if my style of writing is good enough or not. And if they happen to be out of character don't worry. That's why she's going to the cave: to get her peace-loving and gentle traits back and besides that's the way I like 'em. Oh and thanks for reading!

P.S. Who do you think is the best partner for Wanda?

Ian O'Shea?

Kyle O'Shea?

Jared Howe?

Uncle Jeb? (Kidding)

Who??? I'm at a loss since I like jared and kyle paired with wanda sometimes.


	2. Alone in the Desert

A/N: Thanks to those who reviewed!

Disclaimer: I don't own The Host. And the Pressure by Paramore!

Chapter 002: Alone in The Desert

I woke up to the annoying and seemingly endless _beep beep beep_ of my alarm clock. I rolled over and felt for the off button without opening my eyes. Even with my eyes closed, I could sense that it was still dark. Why did I even set the alarm this early? I grumbled as I pulled my blanket over my head to shield the freezing wind from my bare skin. It was so cold and it was only April. I sighed, knowing that I won't be able to get some sleep now. I threw my jacket over my shoulders and started walking towards the kitchen.

I threw random thoughts like how hungry I am in spite of the cold weather and in spite of my heavy eyelids. My stomach always craved for food no matter how sleepy or haggard I may be. That's how weird my digestive system is.

But then of course, because random thoughts may end up in serious and more pressing matters, the result was I started thinking why I was so deeply haggard not to mention irritable.

Let's see. The reason was I stayed up so late last night…

Because I was thinking of my mission and my mother.

I sighed again but this time, not of frustration because I can't go back to Dreamland but because of sadness and longing for my late mother. I was full of regret too because when my mother was still alive it seems like I had taken advantage of her. I never actually thought that no one and nothing could take my mother away from me.

I guess I stand corrected.

oOo

After taking a bath, packing my things and taking one last look at civilization and at my home, I headed for the car to start my journey towards the rebels. It won't be easy I know. There's a 43 percent chance that what that Soul Rescuer saw was just a pack of wild animals than normal human beings trudging along the desert.

Where would they go anyway? I thought as I maneuvered the car out of my garage. It's a desert or crying out loud! It's supposed to be deserted! That's the reason why it got its name! Because nobody would be able to live there on normal conditions. I imagined the burning hot sun and the cactuses and coyotes and I was almost tempted to just not do this mission. I could just be doing some paperwork at this moment and enjoying the cool breeze of the air-conditioned rooms if I hadn't been a stubborn little soul and did what instinct told me to do.

The thing is we souls are so easy to be bullied. Even by their pure instinct.

I sighed for the third time this day as I saw the sandy like ground and the moving dunes. I got the human eyes out of my bag – the Organization gave me five if ever my clumsiness would give me a problem a.k.a. losing it or throwing it absently – and the mirror. I popped the pair on my own two eyes and gave myself some time to adjust.

When I opened my eyes, I felt dizzy. I grabbed a bottle of water and poured some on my eyes. They are waterproof after all and Breath of Heart advised me to do that to avid irritation. After a minute or so, I felt nothing so I tentatively revved the car up again.

Nothing.

The desert has so much space and it looked lifeless and uninviting. I miss my home and warm bed.

I took a deep breath and revved the car faster. With the air-condition unavailable, I was forced to open the window if I don't want to risk myself suffocating inside the car.

I drove silently with the exception of Paramore's Pressure blaring at the car's speakers. I found this cd at the storage room of the Organization and I took it because it was interesting. For me anyway.

Tell me where our time went  
And if it was time well spent  
Just don't let me fall asleep feeling empty again  
Cause I fear I might break and I fear I can't take it  
Tonight I'll lie awake feeling empty

I thought of my mother and what she would say if ever she was still alive.

But that's just it. I wouldn't even be here if it weren't for the revolution. I guess my world revolves around those three things: the revolution, my mother and the organization. As I recount these things, I realize now that the revolution has been a turning point in my life, the organization is the thing that keeps me teetered to sanity and my mother was and still is the most precious thing that's keeping me going. Wherever she is now, I hope she's watching over me.

I have a bad feeling I'm going to mess this up.

I can feel the pressure it's getting closer now  
We're better off without you  
I can feel the pressure it's getting closer now  
We're better off without you

These Paramore guys are really good.

Too bad they had to be overtaken by us…

I've heard that the famous lead singer of the band, Hayley, has given up singing and just doing some gardening now. As i thought f the humans' situations, I felt a pang in my chest. It felt awfully something like regret, pain and pity for the human beings. I began to wonder what i would've done if I were in there shoes. What would I feel? Would I still be there? Or would I be erased from the world?

I think being there would hurt more because you are there but someone else is making the decision for you. I don't think I'll like that. More and more, my pity for the remaining humans grew and my doubt for my species intensified.

Are we actually right with our goals? Is it reasonable to just snatch bodies and live in them?

But it's the natural course of things, I thought defensively. It's just like the food chain. But a greater food chain that involves something else that they weren't expecting at the very least.

Which was us souls. Alien beings. Extraterrestrials. Whatever you call it, it's something that's not human.

The humans are the prey now; they aren't playing the role of innocent consumers no longer.

And we are the predators.

I can feel the pressure it's getting closer now  
We're better off without you  
Feel the pressure it's getting closer now  
You're better off without me.

As the ending notes of the song faded away, I happened to notice a little store at the distance and I would've stopped by if I wasn't in a rush to get this done and over with. Besides I don't want to look suspicious. I had already passed it a few meters away; it would be useless to go back for a few chocolate donuts.

I also saw something that interested me than the store: a sharp peak at the distance. I must be getting close. I also saw that it was getting late with the sun glowing more orange by the minute. Uh – oh. That can't be good.

I checked my wristwatch and saw with anxiety that it was already quarter to six. Maybe it wasn't such a good idea that I left the house at five o'clock huh?

I shook my head at the irresponsible move I made a while ago. I regretted that. I was scared of the dark. Or rather, this body was always nervous when there's no light. I was never afraid of darkness, having been moved into cryotanks before, but now I was uneasy and full of anxiety. My breathing came into hitching gasps as darkness soon fell as the car drove beyond hills. I stopped the car and took deep calming breaths to stop the panic attacks I was feeling.

If this mission kills me I'm going to be really pissed off.

At the thought, I calmed. I guess being violent eases me even when I'm only thinking of it. I'm ever a pro for violence and will never be. I fumbled for the packs at the passenger seat and extracted some chips. I ate them with a speed I never knew I have. I looked at the windshield uneasily and locked every door and climbed at the backseat. I curled up there, dreamed of the worst scenarios that could happen to me in the wilderness before drifting off to dreamland.

oOo

I dreamt about my mother last night. It was before I was a member at the Organization and my world hadn't yet turned upside down.

The Seekers were in control of capturing humans then. They were still in charge, and without a rival for doing what they were doing.

I flinched at the thought. The Seekers now had rivals for capturing humans. I flinched again. It seemed as if getting humans was only a game now and not a delicate process, which just goes to show that even the souls had change now. They were now prepared to use violence just to get what they want. I used to think that we have such a nice goal but now it seems… wrong. This is their planet. We have no right to take away what was most precious to them.

Their family, their world and their very existence.

I sighed and thought of my dream last night. It was the time when I first saw a human that was awake. Very much awake.

I was helping a healer to make the transferring process of the soul to the person. The Seekers came in with a bonded human in tow. It was a female human and she looked very angry not to mention very scared.

I remembered the last words she said to us when the healer got the handkerchief from her mouth: "You monsters are going to pay for this! You won't win in the end!"

I recoiled from the memory and from a sudden touch of an unknown presence.

"I think she's a human Jared."

As drained as I was feeling, the thought of somebody other than me is here in the car with me gave me the creeps. I quickly opened my eyes to see two humans staring at me intently.

One is a pretty girl with her long dark hair swept into a high ponytail and has hazel eyes that never left my face. The other one is a guy with a rectangular shape for a face and sienna-colored eyes. Both of them were beautiful, tired and anxious.

Not to mention humans.

There were no shadows of the familiar silver that I have seen in my mother's or any soul's. I flinched away from them and blinked at them thinking how lucky I am that I found them quickly without having died first and unfortunate that I was all alone and frightened.

I don't think I'm going to survive.

A/N: Well. That's it for the second chapter. Mel and Jared accidentally found Wanda. Please review; it won't take a few seconds!

Agent P (:


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